This blog post on Nantsuttei Ramen will be achived under my "Ramen" blog category that you can browse on my blogs posted on "Ramen" so far.My friends (Sijie & Chris) and I went to Parco Marina Bay at Millenia Walk for a ramen feast, straight after spending almost 3 hours to watch a drama theatre performance at Esplanade. My orginally planned destination to my friends was Keisuke Tokyu ramen (unit P3-02), but somehow due to unexplained reason, we ended up at next-door, Nantsuttei Ramen (unit P3-06) instead.The new Parco Marina Bay at Millenia Walk is almost like a mini Japanese foodie town. Majority of the Parco Marina Bay restaurants on level 3 are very skewed towards the eating cultures and influences of The Land of the Rising Sun (referred to the orgin of Japan's name / national flag).

Nantsuttei's special and unique ingredient is “Ma oil”, which is a blend of seven types of deep-fried garlic with sesame oil. Its noodle is mid-size in thickness and springy in texture, well-suited to the mix of pork-based creamy typed soup and “Ma oil”. The harmony of this type of soup and “Ma oil” is Nantsuttei’s most distinctive features.

I must say that the pictures of the ramen in their menu are not that appetising because they just look so black. Well, that's their specialty, black sesame seed oil.

The interior at Nantsuttei is bright with candy red chairs. While the decor's modern, it still retains that traditional Japanese vibe. The whole place is not that spacious, seats are pretty limited.

Chashu Ramen

Chris & i ordered chashu ramen which is apparently flavoured in a shoyu sauce (S$16) with ajitsuke tamago egg (S$1). Sijie ordered the marutoku negi cha-shu version (difference is that hers comes with more ingredients, that's all). Our steaming bowls of ramen came without much waiting.

Being Kumamoto style, the noodles were straight and slightly thick, thus offering a substantially firm bite. The rich milky tonkotsu broth had a well-defined porky flavor which was further enhanced by a pool of fragrant kuro sesame oil a.k.a Ma Yu or Ma Oil. There was a generous topping of bean sprouts, negi (chopped scallion) and a piece of nori (seaweed).

Marutoku negi cha-shu

The noodles have a very smooth texture and really does strike that fine balance between chewiness, springiness and firmness. The broth itself (which is the real consideration) was good, but not great. The fragrance of the broth base, coupled with the thick black oil substance mixed into it, went well with the noodles.

However, it's lighter than expected and this lack of richness strikes Nantsuttei from the top flight of ramen. It is a pity, otherwise Nantsuttei is pretty good. I judge my ordered Ramen stock with a fool-proof criteria each time - if the bowl is empty at the end of the meal, it must still be considered awesome !!

A note to Sijie & Christina, which ramen restaurant in Singapore should we go next? I think the answer is quite obvious. We must try out Keisuke Tokyo ramen at the same mall ! We may have missed out trying the real ramen this time round, be prepared and get ready to take on the next ramen eating challenge !I simply like to eat Ramen noodles. My blog posts on "Ramen" are not so much of a story. It is just a calm yummy food that is really enjoyable to eat and i can just get really happy by eating a bowl of yummy ramen, or any kind of progresso soup that tastes good !! :-)

Hooray!! Welcome to my 1st Blogoversary celebration in July!! I can hardly believe how fast time flies, its been a year that i've had this photographic blog.

So much has happened in the past 12 months. Some of my photos were selected for exhibit in some photography competitions and i managed to hold my first solo photographic exhibition in my country, Singapore. My name has been published. Whew! What a year. I'm not sure what this next year will bring me to in the photography world but i know it will be hard to top the first one. Honestly, I feel really blessed to have had so much fun in this photographic blog. This past year has been so awesome and i would like to thank all of you reading my humble photographic blog. The whole photographic blogging experience would have not been the same without you, so thank you so much!! I look forward to blogging more of my photos in this next year :-)

Thanks for making this first year so wonderful and more fun than i could have imagined !! :-)

This is my first bilingual photographic blog post where i wrote it synchronously in English and Chinese. 这是我的第一次以双语出版的摄影博客, 我同时用了英文和中文写了这个部落格."Take a step back, you'll have a brighter future" - we often hear these words being used to console or comfort people or even ourselves. There are many translations to this phrase, today's essay is my understanding of "Step back, you'll have a brighter future"."退一步, 海阔天空" - 人们常用这句话劝慰别人或告慰自己, 有许多人对这句话的翻译很多,以下是我对 "退一步, 海阔天空" 所了解的意思.

生命旅程中, 大多数人都希望自己能够出人头地, 可是人生中有很多东西不是我们所能控制的, 所以学会妥协也是一种生存的方式. 如果愿望无法满足的时候, 就试着学会放弃吧! 得不到满足是一种遗憾, 而不能掌握生存的本领却是一种失败.Most people wish they could succeed and excel in their journey of life but there are many things in life that are beyond our control, so one must always learn to give and take! Desire cannot be satisfied unless you learn to compromise which is also a survive skill to master."退一步, 海阔天空" 是一种妥协, 是一种策略, 并不是屈服和投降, 它其实是一种非常务时, 通权达变的智慧, 对于人生来说, 生存毕竟是第一要义, 而生存靠的是理性而不是意气. This mindset of "Take a step back, you'll have a brighter future" is a compromise and a strategy. It is not about giving up or surrender. It is part of adaptation to circumstances of wisdom for life. After all, the first pre-requisite of survival relies on reason rather than emotion.

俗话讲, 退一步海阔天空. 暂时退却, 养精蓄锐, 等待时机, 重新筹划, 这时再进便会更快, 更好, 更有力. 有时候, 不刻意追求反而更容易得到, 追求得太迫切, 太执著反而只能白白增添烦恼. 以退为进, 由低到高, 这既是自我表现的一种艺术, 也是生存竞争的一种策略.On the broader picture, this mindset is actually a temporary retreat, recharge your batteries, waiting for an opportunity to arise, so that the next time you encounter a similar situation, you will be in a better, more powerful state to deal with it. To make concessions in order, from low to high, is not only an art of self-expression, but also a strategy to survive in this highly competitive society. In life, when you are not on the route to seek or pursue something deliberately, the most likely you will be able to gain it. Sometimes it is just so ironic. What's meant to be yours, will eventually be yours. Always remember there is a reason for everything. Just do your best is very good enough.

To be a successful person in life (my definition of the term 'successful' does not neccesarily refer to monetary or prestige social status - i don't judge a person's success by how much they earn), one must have an open mind, a big heart and cheerful personality. With these wonderful attributes, he / she will be able to differentiate gains and losses, relax and enjoy the quiet life and happiness.

生活中的我们要学会去吸收挫折而不是去反抗不顺.没有人能有足够的情感和精力既抗拒不可避免的事实, 又创造新的生活. 你只能在这两个中间选择一种, 你可以在那不可避免的暴风雨中弯下身子, 也可以因抗拒它们而被摧折.Situations do not always turn out to be what we expect, we must learn to accept setbacks and not to resist them. No one can have enough emotion and energy to resist this inevitable fact of life. One can create a new lease of life either you choose to bend down during the inevitable storm or be twisted by the rack. Either you make it or break it. It's your choice.

有时候, 我们会暗想: 这条路真难走, 这种日子再也过不下去了. 那为什么不退后一步呢? 也许只要退后一步, 你就会在人生的沙漠中看见属于你的绿洲, 也许退后一步, 你就能在生命的汪洋大海中发现属于自己的小岛.Sometimes you might think that the current path is a difficult road in your life, so why not let it subside after your step back? Maybe you'll see light in your desert of life, who knows you can find the sea of life in your own island, an oasis belongs to you.

所以当你觉得把路走绝了的时候, 不妨退后一步, 你可能会发现一切都是海阔天空; 心灰意冷的时候, 转念一想, 说不定会发现原来一切正在悄悄转向你所期望的方向. 你会发现, 一切不过如此而已. 人应该期待意外, 生活也会变得多姿多采 - 这是我最好的朋友曾经告诉我的一番话.So whenever you think there is no way out, you might want to try to take a step back, you'll discover everything is not that dark and gloomy or disheartening as what you think. Maybe in time to come, you will realise that everything is back on track again with a brighter future. Always expect the unexpected - and that what's my best friend told me before.

Oh another happy day! In my continuing coverage of celebrations / good times, today’s blog post regards the birthday celebration of a very good friend (Joanne) that took place yesterday. An infinitely more awesome one, i may add !! When it comes to a good friend's birthday, it's always all about cake-cutting and gifts. The question is how and where do you do it. Here’s what we should all get on our birthdays: Great friends gathered around a table toasting us. Good Friends Great Tastes. As the saying goes - A birthday celebration is a Celebration of Life, Food and Friendship !!A birthday comes just once a year, so one should make birthday time extra special for those you care about. The best birthday gifts focus exclusively on the birthday person. Make him or her the center of attention.

The weather for the past 2 days in Singapore has not been so sunny with formation of dark clouds and followed by heavy rain. Nevertheless, i still managed to capture some spectacular sunset at the end of the island.I think this is really one of the things and feelings that i love to do & have - by enjoying an awesome sunset on the beach while the wind is blowing through my hair. I feel so at peace. So relaxed and calm. And for those few moments, i feel as if i am unstoppable.Watching the sun going down is like a reflection of how our own life has a time line. The hands of time can never be turned back, so we have to appreciate every single moment we have because we will never get another chance to relive that moment again.And that's what watching the sun going down has taught me.

For those who are not aware, this Punggol beach is probably the least commercialised beach in Singapore and it also happened to be a historic site that was used for battling weapons during the World War II.

All along, i have always liked to pay attention to the interior design / architectural details of a particular building or any place be it a shopping mall or a residence. As i walked along the corridor of this local shopping mall in town, i realised that the developer for this mall has decorated the basement lobby to a cottage chic style. The more i look at it, the entire place does has the look of controlled clutter that beckons you to relax and enjoy the ambience.Cottage inspired interior design is such an uncomplicated, romantic look that is welcoming and relaxed. Cottage inspired interior design makes for a light, airy, serene, charming and laid-back space. No longer just for vacation homes, this cozy design style is now also commonly selected for decoration at commercial centres.

Cottage inspired interior design is a multi-hued, comfy look typified by painted furnishings with graceful shapes, texture-rich essentials, worn finishes and colors inspired by a garden. Of course also not forgetting to mention another essential 'ingredient' of cottage inspired interior design and that is balcony or window seat that allows guests to enjoy the garden views (as shown in the above pics).

Following the photo exhibition themed "The sky i wish to share with you" at CAT SOCRATES 苏格拉底猫 bookstore cafe in April / May this year where one of my sunrise shots was exhibited, one of my photos is currently on exhibit at the same place with a theme this time round to be "Stand On Your Own Two Feet". I am sure that you should have at least one photo like this, a photo of your own feet. It was taken when you were happy about your new shoes or just in some kind of mood.

Shortlisted "Stand On Your Own Two Feet" photographs are currently on exhibition from 1 July to 31 August 2011.Location of CAT SOCRATES 苏格拉底猫 bookstore cafe:Bras Basah Complex #03-39B

The description for my photo is: "One of my most favourite sneakers to wear for outdoor street photography!"

I find that SHOES = SELF-EXPRESSION. Why? I can go and get a really wacky, colorful, insane, pair of shoes that i absolutely love because people can make fun of your clothes, but they aren't intimidated by shoes!! And because if i wear something that makes me feel like me, i'll act like ME. :-)p/s: To view my past photographs being exhibited at Cat Socrates Bookcafe, please feel free to browse my "Photography Exhibition" category. Thank you.